Carbon Monoxide

What You Need to Know

What is Carbon Monoxide?

Carbon Monoxide is a colorless, odorless, tasteless, and very toxic gas that cannot be detected by the human senses.

What makes Carbon Monoxide?

Carbon Monoxide is a by-product of combustion, and is found whenever any type of fuel is burned incompletely.

Facts

The National Fire Safety Council reports that an average of 2,000 people die and 40,000 others are treated for CO poisoning each year. Approximately 1/3 of the reported CO deaths took place in the winter, when vehicles were left running in the garage without proper ventilation.

High levels of CO in a residence can be fatal in as little as 10 minutes of exposure.

CO replaces oxygen in the blood, causing the body to become poisoned by the lack of necessary oxygen being transported to the body’s vital organs.

CO poisoning is especially toxic to infants and children, pregnant females and the fetus, elderly, smokers, history of anemia, and people with immune system diseases.